25 February 2014

News Story: India Postpones Purchase of 145 Ultra Light Howitzers


By VIVEK RAGHUVANSHI

NEW DELHI — India’s Ministry of Defense has deferred a decision on the purchase of 145 ultra light howitzers from the US subsidiary of BAE Systems because of issues relating to offset obligations, said an MoD source, although the program has not been canceled.

The Defense Acquisition Council, the MoD’s top decision-making body, at a Feb. 24 meeting deferred a decision on the howitzer buy because BAE systems wanted six years, instead of four, to meet its offset obligations. According to Indian law, overseas defense companies have to discharge offsets up to 30 percent of the value of the contract.

Read the full story at DefenseNews